A Word from the Directors 



This 60th annual report of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment 

 Station is prepared to present to the people of the State and to other in- 

 terested persons the results of our experimental work. A more complete 

 presentation of the results of each project will be published later in scien- 

 tific journals or as technical experiment station bulletins. An attempt has 

 been made to increase the attractiveness of the report by omitting a discus- 

 sion of those projects that have not yielded tangible results during the past 

 year, by including numerous illustrations, and by attempting to present the 

 conclusions of our work in a simple, direct manner, omitting any detailed 

 discussion of the experimental procedure. 



It is hoped that a report of this type will be read by many persons 

 who are seeking a concise and accurate statement of the scientific know- 

 ledge that has been accumulated recently by the Agricultural Experiment 

 Station. That an annual report be published is required by law; it is our 

 desire to not only fulfill our legal responsibility but also to prepare this 

 report in a readable form without detracting from its scientific accuracy. 

 The extent to which this objective has been accomplished can only be judged 

 by the reactions of those who read the publication. Your comments are 

 heartily solicited. 



More fundamental than the report, is the concept back of the work 

 of the Agricultural Experiment Station. It is our obligation to discern 

 the basic, fundamental problems that confront the rural people of New Hamp- 

 shire, and to seek in our laboratories and experimental fields, the solution 

 to these problems. We are anxious to exhibit maximum efficiency in this 

 respect. Our staff attempts to maintain close contact with the agricultural 

 industry by attending group meetings of farmers, by discussing their par- 

 ticular field of interest with the staff of the Agricultural Extension Ser- 

 vice, and by keeping abreast of the newest developments at other experi- 

 ment stations as well as commercial concerns that are doing research. In 

 addition, we need to receive suggestions from individuals as well as agri- 

 cultural associations expressing their views concerning the basic problems 

 confronting the various agricultural industries of the State. 



In reading this report, you will note that often a number of persons 

 are working on a single project. This goes to show the complexity of the 

 problems on which we are working. It is not uncommon, for example, to 

 require the assistance of a plant physiologist, a soil scientist, a chemist, 

 and an animal nutrition specialist on a single research project. 



We wish to remind you who are citizens of New Hampshire that this 

 Agricultural Experiment Station located on the University Campus belongs 

 to you. We welcome you to the campus, and our staff stands ready to 

 show you our laboratories, our barns, and our experimental fields in order 

 that you may become better acquainted with the research program that is 

 being conducted. 



Robert F. Chandler, Jr. 

 Director 



Harold C. Grinnell 

 Associate Director 



IV 



